The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated Nigeria’s already fragile and unequal educational system. For example, pre-COVID-19, about 10.2 million school-aged children were unenrolled in institutions, and now, only a fraction of the country’s 36.4 million primary and secondary school students have been able to continue their education through remote channels. The pandemic has effectively slowed down efforts to boost the country’s literacy rate, especially for vulnerable students from internally displaced camps and low-income communities.
Considering the severe setbacks of indefinite school closures, many countries around the world have made the decision to work around the constraints of COVID-19 and reopen schools. Similarly, some Nigerian states are on track for school reopening, as five months after being temporarily shut down, educational facilities in Lagos State are set to reopen this month. So, what lessons can we learn from other countries, to ensure that students are safely welcomed to classrooms?
Israel was one of the first countries to ease lockdown restrictions, by reopening its economy and schools. The government was confident that its rapid and effective handling of the pandemic would support the decision to get the country back to normal. However, in hindsight, government officials say that the country’s initial success at controlling the virus led to a rushed decision to reopen the country.
Two weeks after in-person lessons resumed fully, schools were forced to shut down again after infections at a local high school led to one of the country’s largest coronavirus outbreaks. Hundreds of students, teachers, and relatives were infected, and thousands more were being watched for symptoms. Officials blame a full-on easing of restrictions and the lack of adherence to preventive measures, such as wearing masks and physical distancing and disregard the counsel of public health experts.
Rather than open all schools at once, Uruguay eased lockdown restrictions on schools in various parts of the country. Students in rural and less-densely populated areas were allowed to resume lessons, followed by students unable to access remote learning, and subsequently, students in their penultimate year. Finally, all students in non-urban areas were allowed to resume in-class lessons.
The school reopening process that started in April ended in late June when all students in the capital city of Montevideo were allowed to resume in-person classes. Mixed learning methods, such as in-person and virtual lessons, were adopted to limit the number of students in classrooms at once. In addition to gradually reopening schools, the Uruguayan government strictly enforced physical distancing and the wearing of masks.
Similar to Uruguay’s approach, Botswana took a measured approach to easing lockdown restrictions and reopening schools. Public secondary schools in the Greater Gaborone region were allowed to resume in-class lessons for students in their final year. Public students in other classes, as well as private school students were given deferred resumption dates. School administrators were also mandated to obtain authorisation from the country’s health ministry before opening their doors to students. According to the Director of Health Services Malaki Tshipayagae, the decision to reopen schools in this region was informed by data that showed that “the risks posed by COVID-19 in the region had decreased”.
Read also: Back to school: Have you prepared your child for post COVID-19 reality?
Lessons for Nigeria
While there is no standard, one-size-fits-all approach to managing the coronavirus crisis, it is evident that some countries have managed the situation better than others. In the case of education and reopening schools, two lessons Nigeria can learn Israel, Uruguay, and Botswana are:
- Listen to the experts
In Israel’s cases, the government disregarded the warnings and advice of the top public health official in the country, Siegal Sadetzki. Sadetzki reportedly warned about “losing direction and ignoring professional advice” and cited the approach to reopening schools as a “misstep”. Sadetzki resigned in protest after the government approved eased further restrictions that went against her recommendations.
- Ease restrictions gradually
If there’s one thing that lessons from Uruguay and Israel have taught us, it is to take things slowly, test them out, and make informed decisions. Whereas Israel decided to resume in-person classes across the country all at once, Uruguay and Botswana took a more gradual approach and adjusted their pandemic response accordingly. It is important to note that gradually easing restrictions is not a guarantee of safety; rather, this approach helps us learn what worked well and what did not. Even after phasing its pandemic response, Botswana went under lockdown again after infection rates started spiking.
- Maintain safety measures
Until a vaccine is developed and the virus is ultimately defeated, the UN recommends following preventive measures as best as possible. As the case studies above have shown, one of the key ways to prevent relapse and a spike in the number of infections is to not compromise on safety. Studies that help us better understand COVID-19 are also useful in determining which safety measures are appropriate to adopt in various settings.
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